Middle East: Rotana Continues to Grow

Rotana's international expansion shows no signs of slowing down as the group announced the entry of its affordable lifestyle brand Centro into the Nigerian market.

The African region is set to remain a key focus for the company as it moves towards its goal of operating 100 hotels by 2020.

Located close to Lagos' business district, the 200-plus key hotel and serviced apartments, launched in partnership with Topwide Ventures Limited, adds to its existing portfolio in the region, which includes properties in Khartoum and Sharm el Sheikh.

“Despite being home to a flourishing hospitality industry, Lagos has the highest average rates on hotel accommodation in Africa. Centro Lagos fills this major gap in the industry and heralds a potential paradigm shift in the city’s hospitality scene,” said Omer Kaddouri, President & CEO, Rotana.
Rotana's commitment to the African market is also evidenced by its development of a hotel apartment project in Kinshasa, a five-star hotel and serviced apartments in Tanzania, and a five-star hotel in Mauritania under the Rayhaan Hotels & Resorts by Rotana brand.

Meanwhile, buoyed by an increase in guest arrivals from the UK, Rotana has stepped up its marketing activities in London. Kaddouri said: “Rotana properties are already the first choice for an increasing number of British tourists visiting the Middle East. To capitalise on the robust growth in tourist arrivals from the UK, we are launching an extensive marketing campaign in London built around the mobile taxi and buses advertising concepts to drive more traffic to our properties and give a further push to the tourism sector in the UAE.”

The year-long campaign will see Rotana reach out to key target audiences throughout London and beyond through the city-wide deployment of a fleet of London’s famous black taxis and red double-decker buses, each bearing the Rotana name and logo. Building on the success of a similar initiative in 2014, the liveried fleet will feature over 100 vehicles.

Kaddouri added: “The UAE continues to climb up the popularity charts for tourists from the UK, who account for a growing share of total visitor arrivals in the Emirates and who have been assuming greater prominence within the region’s evolving travel and tourism landscape.

“The UK also happens to be one of the top source markets for Rotana, with tourist inflow from the country making up as much as 19 percent of our business, and in 2014 we welcomed more than 500,000 guests from the UK.”